All Work And No Play? It Doesn’t Have To Be That Way - Part III: Setting Up The Playground

It’s easy to say that all you need to do is encourage your employees to have fun at work, but if you’re stuck doing things the same way, then you’re probably wondering what it is you need to change to create the environment you want. There are general principles to follow. You’ll need to study and adapt these principles to your particular company’s goals and culture. Employee feedback is a must – remember, you’re doing this to get more out of your employees. If you want to create a fun work environment, it should recognize what your employees find fun, not necessarily what you think would be fun.

Break down barriers Self-expression and teamwork can be stymied by the geography of the traditional office, with personal work spaces closed off. To develop collaboration, you need to encourage mingling and interaction. This involves making your work area more open, you need to make sure your employees are free to associate with others without physical barriers.

Turn work into a game If you want to encourage fun and play at work, then you also need to keep in mind that work doesn’t have to be boring. Even just subtly making work feel less like monotonous and more like a game can go a long way toward fostering a more collaborative and productive environment. This can involve changing the process, taking the work out of the office to somewhere less cluttered or crowded, or any of a number of similar approaches. No job is too big or too difficult if you can apply your creativity and have fun while doing the work.